FILE PHOTO: A member of the Japan Ground Self-Defense Force (JGSDF) raises the Japanese national flag in the morning, at JGSDF Miyako camp on Miyako Island, Okinawa prefecture, Japan, April 21, 2022. REUTERS/Issei Kato
TOKYO — Japan on Thursday said it had lost contact with a military helicopter carrying several crew and passengers near Miyakojima, part of its southwest Okinawa island chain.
The UH60 troop transport, commonly known as the Black Hawk, disappeared from radar tracking after leaving a Ground Self Defense Force (GSDF) base on Miyakojima and did not respond to radio communications, according to public broadcaster NHK.
The government’s priority is to rescue those on board, Japan’s Prime Minister Fumio Kishida said in comments aired by NHK.
Japanese Coast Guard ships are searching for the missing helicopter, which, according to NHK, was carrying 10 people. Some local media reported that a senior GSDF commander was among them.
GSDF officials were not immediately available for comment.
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